We were thinking about an April Fool's Day strip, but we just went with the actual page instead because you guys have been so nice about the last couple of weeks. Oh, and the Artist was supposed to go in for a cortisone injection to try to relieve the pain today, but thanks to COVID-19, the fucking office canceled the appointment.
In-story Rose is consistently Rose. Nice sometimes, but don't count on it.
Re:A/N, . . . shit, that's a gut punch. I'm sad but not surprised, sorry to hear Cent isn't going to get relief yet. Thanks for making a page ladies. It's appreciated, but under the circumstances, it's above and beyond.
Is ibuprofen out of the question with your other stuff, Centcomm? I don't have ideas to offer if you can't see the doctor. :(
I've had a recent doctor appt. cancelled, and an upcoming one that I assume will be too.
im on T4.s at the moment. the main issue is that my manual dexterity is degrading and its really pissing me off - they actually said. well its not life threatening. ...
I'm trying to get my head around the reasoning. My wife's PT appointments have been cancelled for 3 months with no promises after that. I'm thinking now that perhaps they are preserving PPG for those dealing with infections & just denying everything not "critical". Sucks, but when you know that a significant number of your med staff are going to get ill...
My flatmate works in a hospital. She's not in a patient contact department, but actually in a better place for me to have more insight into the situation. Since she's been working from home (she's administrative, specifically research compliance) and her impromptu home office is right beside my home office, I've been able to overhear her side of her meetings.
They're not only preserving PPG for those dealing with the infection and those who might have it, but a lot of hospital resources have dramatically shifted. All new research at her hospital and all of the hospitals they work with have been COVID-19 related since around the time we had our first suspected cases that were not travelers. Existing studies were initially allowed to continue, but I haven't heard anything about those in weeks.
Even with the hospital providing PPG to patients, I really would not want to go there right now. There still aren't a huge number of people with it, but it's contagious enough that the number of people with it already is very worrying.
It does sound like there's been a lot of progress on finding drugs to treat it and finding alternative ways to test for it that don't require the reagents that are now in short supply everywhere because of being needed to test for this. Unfortunately, this is one of those things that is hard to predict when we'll have a cure for and when we'll have alternate tests for, because we just won't know until something has been approved. I probably won't know before the general population, because she's not going to be breaking the news to people. As research compliance, she just talks about the processes that people needs to follow, does the paperwork to facilitate this, and figures out how to rectify processes and mitigate situations when people didn't follow process. When stuff gets approved, studies get closed - but they also get closed if the results are sufficiently poor.
It sounds like they're wanting to have multiple approved treatments (to mitigate supply chain issues) and multiple approved testing methods (to mitigate supply chain issues), so there won't be a sudden mass study closing until sufficient mass has been reached, and there won't be celebrating until COVID-19 is a thing of the past. There will absolutely be a public announcement of a cure before either of those.
I can relate. I've been dealing with heart palpitations for about a month now. I went to see cardiologist and he was going to schedule a Cardiac Calcium Score Screening to see if I had hardened arteries but the hospital says they aren't doing them right now because of Covid-19 and probably won't until May or June. So for now I get to go every day wondering if it will be a day my heart feels like it's doing flip flops or not and wondering if it will decide to just stop for good or not. I was told to call 911 if that happens though.
@Centcomm, On one hand that's kind of a slap in the face, like you don't matter, but on the other hand, I understand why they say it. The timing certainly sucks. :( There are exercises that might help in the interim, but I'm thinking you already know that. I can 'hear' your frustration, so all I'll say, is go easy, and take care of yourself.
As for the page, if you hadn't told us, I'd never know there was anything wrong. It looks like the usual great pages everyone is used to, so there's that! But thanks for letting us know. Your well-being matters.
Yes, don't aggravate anything by overusing it.
On the other hand, if they need to be moved a little to keep them from stiffening more, filler is fine...preferably drawn by someone else while you rest.
I wonder what DMSO would do to cortisone.
Of course, there's the downsides of DMSO basically turning your skin off.
I hope you're all reasonably good. I noticed another strip, associated with yours, that has been idle for over a month now, and it has me a little worried.
While I think Tokyo Rose has made her point about her behavior, it's also starting to become tiresome under the current circumstances. Want people to listen to you? Stop acting like an a-hole and insulting them every other word. Doesn't matter if you think someone deserves a dressing down, if they aren't out of control and you have their full attention, don't be a jerk. It used to be called common courtesy, but even in the present day and age it's considered "old fashioned", or something derogatroy I'm not aware of yet. I'm not going to claim I'm the picture of proper etiquette, but I at least try to be polite in any given situation.
Don't get me wrong, I still like Tokyo Rose as a character and find her amusing most of the time because of her creative "colorful metaphors", but at this point I think I've lost the thread of the overall conversation and why anyone should care about her extensive research and analysis. Want to lay blame entirely at Centcomm's fee? Fine. Go ahead and do that if it makes you feel better, but it won't change anything and it isn't going improve the current situation, so all it accomplishes is wasting time; seems like a very human trait to me.
I don't know if TR is an antagonist in the literary sense or if that's her actual role.
She's very good, $@#$%^!! good in fact, at antagonizing people and seems to enjoy it...
But does that make her an antagonist or an antagonizer ?
Or does she just subscribe to the theory that if you make an opponent angry they're more likely to make mistakes ?
I am not a doctor, but I deal with chronic pain in different areas (knee, migraines, etc).
Three things that have helped me with pain (aside from my prescribed meds) are, in increasing effectiveness:
1. Voltaren ointment;
2. Zostrix - an ointment that uses capsicum (hot chili extract); and
3. CBD ointment.
Please, if any of these, or any other therapy, can reduce the pain in your hands, ween yourself off the T4s. With your other medical conditions, and COVID-19, you do NOT need a sedating medication like that.
Which is probably why she appears to be the 'last one standing' from Europe.
We don't talk about what happened to the 'second last one standing' *shudders, then looks over shouder toward the sea*
I'm not so sure that Tokyo Rose is being nice to Ariel, it looks more like a condescension to me. Maybe she likes Ariel, but she's certainly not exuding respect with either her facial expression or tone, at least not by my interpretation. She's singularly the most arrogant, self-righteous and obnoxious AIS in the whole story, so far as I can see, and if this is her idea of being decent to "friends", then I'd find it hard to reciprocate that friendship. Someone needs to tell her to get off her soapbox and get to the point before they disconnect from the meeting. She gets points for showmanship, but since when do artificial intelligences need to feel important, especially to this degree? They may not like Centcomm, but at least she doesn't lollygag and needlessly insult everyone.
@megados: Oh, I remember that Rose is not an AIS, but the discussion has been that only we readers know that, not the characters in the story, which is why I find it incredible that none of them have made mention of her behavior being off-kilter to anyone, except for Centcomm.
I checked the link you provided and it proves that I forgot, Aeneas knows Rose is human because she revealed herself to him, but he can't say anything on pain of death (more or less), so unless he proves to be duplicitous, I'm not going to consider him a factor in her discovery.
Edit: When I began reading this comic a few years ago it was a massive binge read that took weeks. I reread through to Ceci's end and...found my own comment (page 1387):
"You are forever cemented into my memory, CeCi. Godspeed, child.
ATB - Straight to the Stars (feat. Sean Ryan)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_axLG1szU8
Your work is inspiring and thoughtful, CentComm and Tokyo Rose. You have my heartfelt thanks, particularly for the bittersweet moments like this scene, which make me appreciate a character like CeCi all the more. May you both live long, happy lives of creative wonder, and may we always be fortunate enough to share in your labors.
Addendum:
I think it's important to note that, while CeCi was the hero of the day by stopping the Doomsday program, it was Tokyo Rose who made that feat possible by her quick thinking and trust that her gamble would pay off, especially considering that she had no real way of knowing if a restored CeCi would (or could) make the right decision. Ultimately though, even if it hadn't worked, I think Tokyo Rose deserves sincere thanks for bringing CeCi back and allowing her to die as herself. There is dignity in being able to face your fate on your own terms, and that is the gift that Tokyo Rose gave her. She may well be ill-tempered and manipulative, but it comes from an overriding sense of duty and compassion that is easy to misunderstand, but impossible to deny once you recognize it. That is the quality of her character, and a measure of those who took the time to create her. You have my thanks for sharing her with us."
It's probably more than a little self-centered to share my own comments from earlier pages, but I feel like publicly shaming myself for being so critical of Tokyo Rose lately. I don't like realizing I'm a hypocrite. :P
No worries, I can see how my choice of words would lead to that conclusion. Sometimes *I* know what I mean, but I don't write it so everyone else knows what I mean. ;)
While TR isn't all that nice, she seems to be always on the side of "good". A little foul mouthed, but her heart is in the right place.
I wonder if Aeneas will point that out.
PS Cent, do you have a P.O. box or something? It isn't much, but I have a $30 Wallmart gift card I received as a bonus I could send it to you without my wife freaking out about me "wasting" bill money. (Dang joint bank account)
Though I can't disupute Rose's final assertion, were I there I would point out that even with all her superior intell, her plan would still not have worked, so thank Centcom didn't follow it.
Re:A/N, . . . shit, that's a gut punch. I'm sad but not surprised, sorry to hear Cent isn't going to get relief yet. Thanks for making a page ladies. It's appreciated, but under the circumstances, it's above and beyond.
Is ibuprofen out of the question with your other stuff, Centcomm? I don't have ideas to offer if you can't see the doctor. :(
I've had a recent doctor appt. cancelled, and an upcoming one that I assume will be too.
They're not only preserving PPG for those dealing with the infection and those who might have it, but a lot of hospital resources have dramatically shifted. All new research at her hospital and all of the hospitals they work with have been COVID-19 related since around the time we had our first suspected cases that were not travelers. Existing studies were initially allowed to continue, but I haven't heard anything about those in weeks.
Even with the hospital providing PPG to patients, I really would not want to go there right now. There still aren't a huge number of people with it, but it's contagious enough that the number of people with it already is very worrying.
It does sound like there's been a lot of progress on finding drugs to treat it and finding alternative ways to test for it that don't require the reagents that are now in short supply everywhere because of being needed to test for this. Unfortunately, this is one of those things that is hard to predict when we'll have a cure for and when we'll have alternate tests for, because we just won't know until something has been approved. I probably won't know before the general population, because she's not going to be breaking the news to people. As research compliance, she just talks about the processes that people needs to follow, does the paperwork to facilitate this, and figures out how to rectify processes and mitigate situations when people didn't follow process. When stuff gets approved, studies get closed - but they also get closed if the results are sufficiently poor.
It sounds like they're wanting to have multiple approved treatments (to mitigate supply chain issues) and multiple approved testing methods (to mitigate supply chain issues), so there won't be a sudden mass study closing until sufficient mass has been reached, and there won't be celebrating until COVID-19 is a thing of the past. There will absolutely be a public announcement of a cure before either of those.
As for the page, if you hadn't told us, I'd never know there was anything wrong. It looks like the usual great pages everyone is used to, so there's that! But thanks for letting us know. Your well-being matters.
It happens so often I wonder..."is it really co-incidence ? or do we just notice similar things more after the fact ?"
The dentist called and cancelled my appt. the other day and today this pops up on a news blog I read :) a classic...
Just as well, I didn't want to go anyway...
It seems she made her point
I wonder what Aeneas will say to all of that...
Great page, Cent and Rose =)
...hope you are doing better soon, Cent...
It's just her nice doesn't really sound like it to people who can't manage to get their collective assets in gear.
On the other hand, if they need to be moved a little to keep them from stiffening more, filler is fine...preferably drawn by someone else while you rest.
Of course, there's the downsides of DMSO basically turning your skin off.
I hope you're all reasonably good. I noticed another strip, associated with yours, that has been idle for over a month now, and it has me a little worried.
Don't get me wrong, I still like Tokyo Rose as a character and find her amusing most of the time because of her creative "colorful metaphors", but at this point I think I've lost the thread of the overall conversation and why anyone should care about her extensive research and analysis. Want to lay blame entirely at Centcomm's fee? Fine. Go ahead and do that if it makes you feel better, but it won't change anything and it isn't going improve the current situation, so all it accomplishes is wasting time; seems like a very human trait to me.
Ah, but villains do love a good rant, don't they ?
She's very good, $@#$%^!! good in fact, at antagonizing people and seems to enjoy it...
But does that make her an antagonist or an antagonizer ?
Or does she just subscribe to the theory that if you make an opponent angry they're more likely to make mistakes ?
Three things that have helped me with pain (aside from my prescribed meds) are, in increasing effectiveness:
1. Voltaren ointment;
2. Zostrix - an ointment that uses capsicum (hot chili extract); and
3. CBD ointment.
Please, if any of these, or any other therapy, can reduce the pain in your hands, ween yourself off the T4s. With your other medical conditions, and COVID-19, you do NOT need a sedating medication like that.
XD
Heck, Rose is even trying to be nice to her.
We don't talk about what happened to the 'second last one standing' *shudders, then looks over shouder toward the sea*
This sequence also reminded me of something, so thanks for making me look!
I checked the link you provided and it proves that I forgot, Aeneas knows Rose is human because she revealed herself to him, but he can't say anything on pain of death (more or less), so unless he proves to be duplicitous, I'm not going to consider him a factor in her discovery.
Edit: When I began reading this comic a few years ago it was a massive binge read that took weeks. I reread through to Ceci's end and...found my own comment (page 1387):
"You are forever cemented into my memory, CeCi. Godspeed, child.
ATB - Straight to the Stars (feat. Sean Ryan)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_axLG1szU8
VNV Nation - Beloved
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kfc3zcnrWMQ
Your work is inspiring and thoughtful, CentComm and Tokyo Rose. You have my heartfelt thanks, particularly for the bittersweet moments like this scene, which make me appreciate a character like CeCi all the more. May you both live long, happy lives of creative wonder, and may we always be fortunate enough to share in your labors.
Addendum:
I think it's important to note that, while CeCi was the hero of the day by stopping the Doomsday program, it was Tokyo Rose who made that feat possible by her quick thinking and trust that her gamble would pay off, especially considering that she had no real way of knowing if a restored CeCi would (or could) make the right decision. Ultimately though, even if it hadn't worked, I think Tokyo Rose deserves sincere thanks for bringing CeCi back and allowing her to die as herself. There is dignity in being able to face your fate on your own terms, and that is the gift that Tokyo Rose gave her. She may well be ill-tempered and manipulative, but it comes from an overriding sense of duty and compassion that is easy to misunderstand, but impossible to deny once you recognize it. That is the quality of her character, and a measure of those who took the time to create her. You have my thanks for sharing her with us."
It's probably more than a little self-centered to share my own comments from earlier pages, but I feel like publicly shaming myself for being so critical of Tokyo Rose lately. I don't like realizing I'm a hypocrite. :P
kill it with fire !!!
I wonder if Aeneas will point that out.
PS Cent, do you have a P.O. box or something? It isn't much, but I have a $30 Wallmart gift card I received as a bonus I could send it to you without my wife freaking out about me "wasting" bill money. (Dang joint bank account)
*Big Hug*
Happy belated birfday, Centcomm. 😁